This invention relates to a viewing device which causes flat, two-dimensional pictures to be perceived by the user as having depth as a third dimension.
It has long been known that flat pictures, whether stationary or moving, can be made to have a three-dimensional effect using special techniques and equipment. For example, in stereoscopic optical methods, two different pictures are made of the same scene or object at a horizontally separated spacing equivalent to human eye spacing, and the resultant pictures are separately viewed by each appropriate eye. In stereoscopic viewers for still photographs, the two different photographs are mounted in side-by-side relationship and viewed through a lens or aperture system that causes each of the viewer's eyes to see separate pictures. Since the eyes thereby see the object in the same manner as originally "seen" by the camera which produced the pictures, a stereoscopic three-dimensional effect is produced.
In the case of moving pictures, the two views taken of a given scene by two lenses laterally separated by human eye separation distance are projected onto the same viewing screen in superimposed juxtaposition. Each view is, however modified so as to facilitate separate perception by the eyes of the viewer. The views may, for example, be projected through polarizing filters mounted in orientations 90.degree. apart. When the person who watches the moving picture wears special glasses having two different polarizing filters, each eye sees the appropriate one of the two views, thereby providing a depth perception or stereoscopic visual effect.
The aforementioned techniques for stereoscopic visual effects are expensive and difficult to achieve. Consequently, relatively little is done to provide large-scale publicly accessible stereoscopic viewing, such as television programming or motion pictures.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a viewing device which will cause flat subject matter to be perceived as having depth as a third dimension.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a device as in the foregoing object of simple and rugged construction which may be economically manufactured.
These objects and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.